oldest UFO photo or oldest hoax?

I say hoax because if the man was the primary reason for the photo then the pic would have been centered on him.

Or, someone was smart enough to have him be in the photo and they knew the ufo was there for reference.

Or while fixing to take the photo the picture taker saw the ufo and realigned their shot.

I'll stick with hoax though.

clearly from the photographic evidence this picture is a hoax

gotta love that the perpetrator poses for the photograph with the object in a desperate plea for attention. Funny that something that visible was only seen by that one person and there is a complete absence of supporting evidence to support his claim that it is a UFO.

reply to post by Arbitrageur


I really can't account for the bubble. Unless the airship was at a slightly off kilter angle, and the tail fins look strange as they were out of focus. And if the camera had a long shutter time, movement of the USS Akron would have been captured distorted.

I do not have any knowledge of antique photography equipment. How well could the lenses focus? How long did the shutter time need to be? Were they light enough to be hand held, or did they require a stand. And, did they still use the firepans or did they have flash bulbs in the 30's? I'm not sure but I don't think that cameras were as easy as "point and click" back then.

I do think that the dates and locations add up. News of the event would have gone out on the wireless (um that's radio in modern language). That would have given them a heads up warning to set up the camera.

Something like the USS Akron flying overhead would have been a moment worthy of a photo. Remember that the Great Depression was in full swing, and film and development costs would have been a frivolous expense. Only a noteworthy event would have warranted dragging out the camera for a photo.

Edited to add:
This would also explain why the photo was framed to capture both the man and the USS Akron.

[edit on 29-3-2010 by J-in-TX]

reply to post by J-in-TX

I do not have any knowledge of antique photography equipment. How well could the lenses focus? How long did the shutter time need to be? Were they light enough to be hand held, or did they require a stand. And, did they still use the firepans or did they have flash bulbs in the 30's? I'm not sure but I don't think that cameras were as easy as "point and click" back then.

The camera was almost certainly one of these:




The Kodak Brownie was the standard non-professional camera for decades. It had a single fixed focus lens. Some models had a simple dial to give you a choice of three shutter speeds: "Sunny, Partly Cloudy and Cloudy." (At least mine did ) The view-finder did not pass through the lens, as in an SLR, but was a simple hole located above and to one side of the lens. This slight displacement causes brownie photos to have that characteristic "off center" composition seen here. The "UFO" may not have been visible through the simple viewfinder when the photographer snapped the photo!


[edit on 30-3-2010 by DJW001]

DJW, Thanks for the info on the camera. I didn't realize that there were cheap and very functional cameras available at time. As I am an electronics engineer, my interests in the technology of this time period are in the radios. My mom has a radio from this period, and I spent a bit of time to get it functional. I had to get tubes from a Czech manufacturer, and replace a few other components to get the bias and some other things correct.

I was able to find a users guide of the cameras manufactured from 1930-33. (.pdf file)

Brownie users guide

I knew that there were vast strides made in film technology that had been made at that time, what with the "movin' and talkin' pictures" and all. But, WOW! This was an amazing device. And extremely simple to use. I'm envious that you have one. Or, did have one.

However, I still tend to lean to the USS Akron. The location and time frame coincide all too well with the Navy's decision to parade this thing around and show it off.

USS Akron

As for the "bubble" in the image well, hmmm. I don't know. I was thinking along the lines of the airship making a turn as the photo was being taken. And a long exposure time and poor lesne could cause the tailfins to cause this effect. But, if they were using the above camera with its double lense, and in "snapshot" mode

Then maybe it is something that cannot be explained.

[edit on 1-4-2010 by J-in-TX]

Originally posted by Incarnated

Originally posted by Glorious_Ruler
Why isn't the picture centered on him?

Fishy...

Maybe because they stopped to look at the UFO and wanted to get a picture of it. Why do you assume it should be centered on him?

First off centered on him is a bad photography no-no. Anyone that wishes to be a photographer first learns that.

Newsflash: average people have owned cameras for a long time. They tend to use them for photos of family, friends and places they visit. They usually aren't concerned about the artistic merits of their snaps.

Secondly it's not a picture of the person. It's a picture of the person and the disk. Just as if it were a picture of the person and MountWashington. It's unlikely the man would be centered.

Not fishy at all.

Right.

So your instinct wouldn't be to get a photo of the object. Rather, since the aliens are obviously waiting patiently in place for you to get out of your car and take a picture, you'd want yourself photographed with it for your collection.

"Here's me in front of the Lincoln Memorial...here's me at Mt Rushmore...here's me with a flying saucer..."

Nice picture.. No doubt.
Seems legit!
But.. i noticed it kinda looked like a hat thrown like a freesbee.. ( ? )

reply to post by Glorious_Ruler


It probably was in the original and has just been cropped to look like he isn't ever since.

Not sure what to make of it, the streetlight idea is possible and definitely more probable than aliens or another out there explanation but its hard to tell with any certainty from just a photo.

Originally posted by Glorious_Ruler
Why isn't the picture centered on him?

Fishy...

Looks perfectly legit to me. Reminds me of my avatar photo.

Strange, I went through all of these pages, and STILL didn't see a pic of the oldest UFO photo ever. It's this one, from 1870. Some may remember it, as the auction of it made for a minor news item.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/5394d7f09e71.jpg[/atsimg]

(who dug up this thread anyhow?)...though, always glad to dust off this photo for those who haven't seen it. (my guess is it's something on the lens, but who knows)...

reply to post by beastamerica


That is one seriously muscular kid, nevermind the object in the sky!

I've always found it interesting that the shape and design of photographed UFO's changes with time. The OP UFO looks old, doesn't it? It kind of 'fits' the era of the photo.

Gazrok: I didn't even notice the date...!

[edit on 22/7/2010 by Sendran]